New ICE report gives the lie to 'sanctuary' advocates' claims

The proponents of so-called “sanctuary” cities claim that by limiting their cooperation with the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency requests to detain wanted illegal aliens that public safety is not endangered. However, the latest report by ICE on detainer request shows that local law enforcement agencies are regularly releasing criminal aliens who have been convicted of violent crimes such as domestic battery and sexual assault.

The ICE report covers the period February 4-10. It shows a total of 47 declined detainer requests from two dozen jurisdictions across the U.S. New York City accounted for half of the detainer requests denied. Several of the aliens released by New York City had been charged or convicted of violent crimes. Mayor Bill de Blasio, a Democrat, has remained defiant in his adherence to his sanctuary policy.

The state of Virginia was next on the list for the greatest number of declined detainer requests, coming in at six. Virginia was followed by the state of Washington, which had five. Both states released aliens convicted of crimes such as driving under the influence, assault, and domestic violence.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced earlier this week that the Department of Justice will block the granting of federal funds to sanctuary jurisdictions such as New York City and Seattle. The Trump administration is still battling in court over legal challenges to President Trump’s January executive order on immigration enforcement within the country. Federal courts in San Francisco and Seattle have blocked the enforcement of the executive order, which had instructed Sessions to “ensure that jurisdictions that willfully refuse to comply with 8 U.S.C. 1373 (sanctuary jurisdictions) are not eligible to receive Federal grants.”

According to the ICE report, during the February 4-10 period, the immigration agency made 2,285 detainer requests across the country. Five hundred and forty of these were tendered to 10 jurisdictions that “do not comply with detainers on a routine basis.” Those 10 jurisdictions are as follows: